Imagine buying a century old home and finding that the previous owner never left. Not in person, but in every cupboard, drawer and closet, where a lifetime of collecting was still waiting. That is the situation described by @beckybidlen, who says they bought an abandoned 1894 home with everything in it. Now she is sorting through the rooms one at a time, and the dining room delivered a haul that would make any antique lover pause.
@beckybidlen
A House Full of Someone Else’s Things
According to her, the sale included the contents of the house, and the previous owner collected everything. That has meant months of work sorting the trash from the treasure. Her caption asks a question that every collector eventually faces: would you keep any of this or sell it?
What she does show is the work of clearing it room by room. Today’s room is the dining room, and the star of the show is a set of built in drawers and cabinets.
Protective Gear and a Careful Start
Before she opens anything, she points out that she wears protective gear. As she explains it, when she is cleaning a new area, she often uncovers mold or animal waste. That is a realistic detail about cleaning out a long empty building, and it is a good reminder that treasure hunting in an abandoned home is not just glamorous discovery. It is dusty, smelly, tiring work.
She says that whenever anyone found a cool kitchen or dining room item, they stashed it in the built in for her to go through. So the cabinet works like a time capsule of other people’s favorite finds, saved up until she could sort them.
What Was Hiding in the Dining Room
Beneath all the napkins and tablecloths, she found something shiny: another silver platter. From there the list kept growing. She pulled out a pair of pewter candle holders, three purple glass candle holders, a set of wine glasses and something wrapped in a blue cloth bag. There were pink and blue glass string pictures.
Then came the china. She found a bone china set made in England, marked by appointment to Her Majesty the Queen, Paragon fine bone china. There were boxes of Wedgwood china too. Tucked among them was a small handmade gold dish from Greece, a mug from Buckingham Palace and a meat carving set that says Sheffield, England.
She connects the carving set to a personal goal. She wants to host family Thanksgiving at their house this year, and a silver platter and a carving set are a good way to start. She also says there are a ton more boxes to go through, so the story is far from over.
More Finds From a Follow Up Post
In a later post, she shared more of what the house has given up. She added two more teapots and some champagne glasses. She found a plate collection by Chuck Wren called Mystic Warriors, complete with a certificate of authenticity. There were two Kodak Instamatic cameras from the 1960s, a Galileo thermometer made in Germany and an Ertl Model T. She also found carved bone pieces that were handmade in Newfoundland and Labrador.
As for selling, she explains that the waiting list for a booth at the local antique mall was too long, so she has not started selling yet. Instead she continues to sort, clean and decide what stays and what goes.
What Some of These Pieces Are
If you are curious about the kinds of items she mentions, here is a quick guide.
Bone china is a type of porcelain made with bone ash, which gives it a bright, delicate look and strong durability. England has a long history of making it, and many sets carry a royal warrant mark or a maker’s stamp on the base. Wedgwood is one of the best known English pottery names, famous for pale blue jasperware as well as many other patterns. Sheffield, England, has been known for centuries for silver plating and cutlery, so a carving set marked with that city has a recognizable heritage.
A Galileo thermometer is a sealed glass tube filled with liquid and floating glass bulbs, each tagged with a temperature. As the room warms or cools, the bulbs rise and sink. A Kodak Instamatic was an easy to load camera introduced in the 1960s, popular with families who wanted simple snapshots. Pewter is a soft metal alloy that has been used for tableware and candle holders for generations.
Sorting a Houseful of Stuff
Anyone who has inherited or purchased a house full of belongings knows how overwhelming it can be. A few strategies can help.
First, sort in rounds. Go through a room once to pull out obvious trash and anything damaged beyond saving. Go through again for items worth keeping, donating or selling. Do not try to decide everything in one pass.
Second, protect yourself. Dust masks, gloves and sturdy shoes are sensible in any long closed home, and mold or animal droppings call for extra caution. If a space seems very contaminated, consider asking a professional about the safest way to clear it.
Third, photograph and list. Take pictures of marks on the bottoms of dishes, silver stamps and labels. Those marks help you research each piece later and keep a record if you decide to sell.
Fourth, research before you sell. Search recently sold listings and, for big items, ask an appraiser or a reputable dealer. Remember that sets sell better when complete, and that mismatched or chipped pieces may be worth less than their appearance suggests. Fifth, think about the sentimental side. Sometimes a mug from a faraway place or a hand carved figurine is worth keeping because of the story it tells, not because of its price.
Putting Treasures Back to Use
One of the nicest things about her plan is that she wants to use what she finds. Hosting Thanksgiving with a carving set and platters from a house that has stood since 1894 turns a pile of objects into a family memory. Silver should be washed gently and dried promptly. China with gold trim should never go in the microwave or dishwasher. Antique glass benefits from hand washing in lukewarm water. With a little care, these old pieces can serve a new generation of holiday tables.
It is also a reminder that abandoned places often hold more than they seem to. Behind the dust, the mold and the stacks of linens, someone kept a set of treasures for a very long time. Now they are getting a second chance.
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